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Three-quarters have not considered current account switch, survey says

Fewer than one in five people considered a current account change, but did not go through with it, according to a study.

Author: Sam Gooch
Date: Oct 26, 2010 - 12:14:19 PM

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Fewer than one in five people considered a current account change, but did not go through with it, according to a study.

Three out of four consumers have never even considered switching their current account, one survey has revealed.

According to a report by Consumer Focus - which aims to tackle financial issues that matter to customers including savings accounts and give them a stronger voice - 17 per cent, or more than eight million people in the UK, had thought about making a change but not gone through with it.

Some of the reasons for this lack of action included the negative effect it could have on someone's credit rating, as well as the hassle involved.

In addition, only seven per cent of people surveyed admitted they had switched current accounts in the last two years.

Sarah Brooks, head of financial services at the organisation, said the idea of moving this product does not even enter the minds of many people, even if their financial institution is not doing a decent job.

She added: "Until more people are prepared to vote with their feet, there will not be enough pressure on banks to improve their performance. Complaints against banks are persistently at an unacceptably high level."

What's more, 29 per cent who are not happy with their financial organisation and have considered making a change still fail to do so, which is mainly down to the process.

And more than two in five (44 per cent) pointed out that when they tried to make changes there had been issues.

However, other sectors did not experience such continuity as 31 per cent switched their energy supplier with 26 and 22 per cent of customers moving their telecoms and home insurance providers respectively.

But those looking for a current account to store cash in may like to take heed of advice from the British Bankers' Association, which observed last week that these products should not be used as savings accounts

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View all articles by Sam Gooch

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